Are you happy you didn't sell your SUV?

Comments

You know I think you are pretty much the norm. Most people don't care what someone else drives they simply care about what works best for them. The only peer pressure I ever got on buying a SUV verses a Pick-up or Mini Van wasn't from one of my peers it was from my son. He pleaded with me not to get a mini van because if I would have ever driven him to school his friends would think I had to drive his moms car. My wife wouldn't drive a mini van so if we had two cars and one was a mini van I would have driven it.

There is a segment of our society that does believe they have the right or duty to determine what everyone else drives. They know best and everyone else just doesn't get why they shouldn't be consulted when we go to the dealership.

If I were you I would have bought the ugliest minivan possible, with a decent reliability rating, just to spite my son. That's just me, I'm evil that way. Luckily I don't have kids yet. Can't afford them and not ready for them.

i had one, a beautiful Nissan Armada. Lost 5500 dumping it when prices spked to get a Honda Odyssey. I wish I woudl have kept it. the money I lost could have paidoff my home equity loan, and I would still be driving the best vehicle I have ever had.I would gladly trade the $250 a month I save in gas/payment for the quiet ride the big SUV had. Minivans are practical, but they suck, its like driving a toaster oven.

Look. I realize that based solely on being green that my owning an SUV may seem totally selfish. You know what? I don't care. While it is used largely for commuting during the week, the weekends bring out the reason we purchased it. We have three kids, a boat and a large extended family. While we could do with less size, it would cramp our ability to do what we do. Add to that the fact that the smaller CUV's and such actually could have cost no less than the same and often more than our Armada did to purchase, the ONLY deficit in ownership ends up being the gas mileage and my carbon footprint. The former is not but by 2-4 mpg and the latter is mostly when it is used in normal commuting. That said, if they start bringing out hybrid versions of big SUV's that don't cost thousands more than the regular version, I'm all in. For now, though, it is what it is. For the record, I replaced my '03 Expedition for my '08 Armada during the gas price crisis.

doesn't really matter. i leased it through my business, and will be glad to walk away from it in 2 more years, from a fun to drive standpoint. Lets not kid ourselves, having had both an 08 Armada and now a minivan, the van kills the Armada in ease of useand cargo hauling. getting in and out of that rig was a pain, and lifting my baby's car seat into the rear would have been a killer. storage behind the 3rd row seats couldnt accomodate a folded stroller or groceries like the van can, even when NOT folded.I never had to haul more than 4 people so leaving the seats down in the Armada wasnt a big deal to me. If I were buying today, i would be getting a new Chevy Traverse, but when i buy next, I am getting a wagon.

My son did work a great internship last summer that required a dependable car and socked away about what I paid for the Mustang. He was willing to and did pay 2/3 of his dorm room upgrade this year and he bought himself a new computer for school. He treats it very different than his car. Nobody is allowed near it. And if a dvd of his gets touched, all hell breaks loose.

I find that I have to be the one who monitors the oil and coolant reservoir in his car. He did 9000 miles in the 10 weeks of summer and the car now has over 110k miles on it.

I saw the thread titled, "Are you happy you didn't sell your SUV?" and had to chime in my 5 dollars worth.

We have a 2003 GMC Envoy that we bought for the following reasons:a) Utility - haul a lot of stuff at timesb) 7 passengers (have had to use quite often) c) Pull our road trailer d) 4WD capability here up North, especially when it snows.

When the gas got high, some others around us were dumping their SUV's, buying a small car, and the bottom line was they lost money on the deal. I figured till I sold the SUV, and bought a small car, the savings in gas would never make up for what I would lose on the deal.

Besides ... the four reasons for purchasing the SUV in the first place, still hold true, so why the heck would I get rid of it.

We have suv's that are literally at half of the ownership (30 year goal) time frame. One has app 11k per year and the other less than 8k per year. Due to business applications, they were never on a payment schedule and fully depreciated @ 5/6 years, A small issue: I still carry comprehensive insurance, as they stil have uncommon residual value. So the real persuader would be: how much over the monthly payments for a new economy car (say Civic- @ 400 per mo, plus the cost of gas $ 48. per mo. it actually uses) do I use for suv gas. So far the SUV gas ranges from 89-122 per month. What does the math say to others?

So the real persuader would be: how much over the monthly payments for a new economy car (say Civic- 400 per mo, plus the cost of gas $ 48. per mo. it actually uses) do I use for suv gas. So far the SUV gas ranges from 89-122 per month. What does the math say to others?

Standard battle tank mileage was about 3 gallons ot the mile. Even the old M-60. I might have been able to squeeze a few more MPG out of 548 or a APC.

What I was saying however that there were times when I was in heavy traffic in LA if I could have pulled 12 MPG out of a tank I might have been willing to drive one. Maybe just a Bradley if I could get them to leave the gun mount?

But On long highway trips I do get 12 MPG pulling a travel trailer with my SUV. This is a fantastic country to tour and visit. The four Corner states have some very interesting history and plenty of RV parks where you can stay for $20-$30 a night. Unhook the SUV and drive to plenty of interesting sites. In May I would like to go see Mount Rushmore and Yellowstone. All things that make me glad I didn't sell my SUV. Without the trailer I can still pull down 16-17 MPG in comfort.

You know I am now 65 years old and have not seen Yellowstone. It is on my list for sure. Now if I can just find an SUV I like that gets 30+ MPG on the highway, I may be satisfied. As long as it has XM radio.

What do the hybrid SUVs get? My best friend just got back from a 3 month trip through the lower 48. He has a brand new Danali loaded with the 6.0 and he averaged just about 20.

I like my Tahoe and I would love it with a Diesel. Right now I believe I have the same size motor as you do, a 5.7? Cat back and cold air. But it looks like I might need a new muffler after all the snow I was in last year.

So far the best diesel I have owned was my old 7.2 Ford Powerstroke. 20 MPG towing 5000 pounds. But it had more than 500 Pounds feet of torque. Put that motor in my Tahoe and it would get 25 easy. The F-250 was a heavy beast.

Don't need XM because I prefer a multi changer with a good speaker system. The drop down DVD player is a nice option as well even if we have a flat screen in the RV. So leather, heated seats, zone heating and air, I have 4wd but 2wd would get better fuel mileage, and a towing package works for me. The Nav system is a nice addition as well.

You know that was a real plus in the GMC Hybrid PU. The Bose system was far superior to the JBL in this Sequoia. I have a whole set of CDs that I burnt right from the originals. Then I only play the copy CD. This Toyota will not play half the CDs I have. Skips and has no changer. Changer and XM is not available with this lame NAV. If I could put the Audio and climate control from the GMC into the Toyota I would be way ahead here. Of course this pig is still lucky to get 17 MPG on the road. And it is only a 4.7L V8. It is about equal to the GMC 5.3L power wise. I tell you that BMW X5 diesel had some power. It was almost scary. I am sure I would get a ticket as it just jumps from 50 to 85 MPH. Passing on a hill with this Sequoia is marginal at best. It is not slow like a Prius or Corolla but nothing to write home about.

I am not totally sorry I bought this SUV. I probably should have waited till I found the diesel SUV I really want. I do have a young fellow that is very interested in the Sequoia. He has two kids with one on the way. Not room in his Rav4 for 3 child seats. He was working on my overhead door and fell in love with the Sequoia. He knew all about them and acted like he wanted to try and get financing. I won't give it away. I have the patience of Job when selling a vehicle. The GMC was on Craigslist over a year till I got my price.

"You know I am now 65 years old and have not seen Yellowstone. It is on my list for sure. Now if I can just find an SUV I like that gets 30+ MPG on the highway, I may be satisfied. As long as it has XM radio. "

The Ford Escape Hybrid will net you 30+, if you stay around 70 MPH. I get around 32 with my 2008 AWD FEH @ 75 MPH.

It is no good for towing, however.

But it does have satellite radio, I'm not sure which one (the 2008 didn't come with it).

The Escape is kind of small. I can get 30 on the highway with an X5 or ML320 CDI. Both a lot bigger, better handling, quieter, more comfortable. I don't want to give up my Sequoia until I can get something better. Though if VW were to sell the Tiguan with the 4 cylinder diesel it would be worth the downsize. It should get near 40 on the highway. That and my Sister and brother in law just tried to buy a FEH in October. No discounts, which ended up $10k more than the V6 they got that is loaded. I rode in back and it was not comfortable AT ALL. They like taking ours when we go on trips to the desert.

Many new hybrid SUVs come with XM or Sirus? My friends Denali got a year free. I don't think unless they start offering diesels in SUVs you are going to get something that can tow that gets much better than 21 MPG.

our '04 escape has leather and the rear seats have some recline.last week we drove about 1600 miles visiting universities.they seemed ok to me.in a role reversal, a couple of times i sat in the back watching a movie, while my daughter drove. :blush:

"The Escape is kind of small. I can get 30 on the highway with an X5 or ML320 CDI. Both a lot bigger, better handling, quieter, more comfortable."

... and both are a LOT more expensive. I think the Tiguan is about the same size as the FEH. As to price, it depends on where you shop. The dealer here tends to keep them on the lot (last time I checked), where as some dealers in the mid west have maybe one or two per quarter. Ford only produces 25K FEH per year due to lack of batteries.

I've been fairly impressed with the packaging of the Escape. For being a small-ish vehicle, it seems pretty roomy inside. Now if you need a third row seat, or full-sized SUV-type cargo space, it's not going to cut it, but it seems like a decent 4-adult vehicle.

my wife still loves her '04 escape, but we are kind of looking for another vehicle due to too many drivers and not enough cars; opposite of you. with some fortera triple treads on it, she has no problems when the weather is bad.that's usually when she points out how much she likes it.we have 4 fords, so we will be looking at another one.my wife wants an escape hybrid. there is a limited model now like she has now, but they are very expensive.i am thinking the 4cyl/6 speed limited would be a good choice for us, instead.while doing my research, i noticed the escape has about the same cargo capacity as an edge!

"my wife wants an escape hybrid. there is a limited model now like she has now, but they are very expensive.i am thinking the 4cyl/6 speed limited would be a good choice for us, instead. "

You would not make up the difference in price unless you own for 6 - 10 years (depends on gas prices). I got the FEH because I wanted the technology, and all my miles are in town. But the FEH limited is pricey unless you can find a deal. Also, unless you live in California, there may be very limited selection.

If you can sign a deal before March 30, you can qualify for the Hybrid tax credit, which runs $3000 for the FWD and $2200 for he AWD.